September 27th, 2022, Tuesday – Exactly one week since Inori's predicament. It was 5:30 PM, and Katsuyama's central shopping street was buzzing with life.
.
.
.
.
.
Fukui's streets pulsed with end-of-work energy.
Salarymen in crumpled suits streamed from office buildings, mixing with students and housewives shopping for dinner and tomorrow's breakfast.
Street vendors cranked up the volume, touting sizzling takoyaki and sweet chestnuts. The air hummed with tired chatter and moving bicycles.
With winter creeping in, the sun dipped low, casting a warm, orange glow on the bustling streets. Evening's liveliness had begun.
Amidst the myriad of people returning home from work, a quaint Japanese-style shop stood tucked away, its red banner reading "Tengokyu Family Store" in bold black kanji.
The owner, a diminutive old man, tended his onigiri stand outside. As he dusted the wooden counter, he glanced at an alley right in front of his store – then returned his gaze, continuing his meticulous cleaning.
Trash shifted. Something moved. It wasn't a rat. Within the alley, Inori sat with folded legs and crossed arms, head bent in defeat.
Dirty and smelly, she now resembled a textbook homeless person.
Rubbish piled around her, accompanied with her neighbors which were rats and cockroaches.
Inori's gaze drifted upwards, drawn by the distant hum of traffic, as she slowly lifted her dirt-smeared face towards the street.
The shop across caught her attention, clearly tempted by the old man's onigiri stand.
After staring for a whole minute, her lips stammered open.
"I....I am ....sooo hungry...." She touched her grumbling stomach. 'I saw this coming but.... the leftover rice I found in the trash isn't sitting well in my stomach.' she thought to herself.
'I need to leave this area soon, too many men have been approaching me.' She remembered the experience two days back, some drunk office workers had approached her at this very alley, she barely escaped without getting touched.
A tear landed on her folded arms.
"I... I want to go home." She muttered with her throat dry.
- Inori has walked far away from where she originally woke up. She had tried explaining to some approachable adults that she was the prime minister's daughter....It was immediately followed with attempts to send her to a psychiatric ward.
As Inori spoke to herself, her gaze was still fixed at the onigiri stand. Making the old man feel guilty.
Without knowing, a strand of saliva made it's way down her lips, still looking intensely at the store.
'That kid has been sitting there for hours now. She's probably homeless.' he thought to himself, pity written all over his wrinkled face.
To nobody's surprise, everyone minded their business while passing the alley. Inori stealing glances at each of their faces. For personal reasons, she refused to beg. Sometimes even greeting whoever locked eyes with her.
'Father would be ashamed if I begged like a peasant.... but I honestly don't have any choice, I'm starving...' she sighed then looked at her black nails, her gaze trailing across the bandage sleeves on her arms.
'These clothes..... can I even call them that, they're quite strange....' she caressed the perfectly smooth fabric.
'They're really durable.... I tested it with multiple sharp objects but I couldn't dent it.' she rubbed her finger on across.
'Good thing it's so snug and warm tho, the weather is quite chilly during this time of year.'
A faint smile appeared, her situation wasn't completely terrible.
'However... they are still many problems.....Hunger is the obvious and most urgent one. Rashes and body pain is second. Oh, and I desperately need the bathroom, this fabric proved difficult to remove... so I haven't peed ever since...'
Inori just rambled about, speaking to herself kept her company. After some time, the hunger pangs got severe and she decided to sleep. At least some rest would restore some energy.
With that being said, she covered herself with a dirty Newspaper beside her, in hopes of the pain magically disappearing after a nap.
Inori glanced at the title of the discarded sheet, reading "Tragic news: Prime Minister's daughter, Tabata Inori passes away on her birthday." Her eyes lingered on the main text before chuckling.
"How unsettling...." She shuddered, an unsettling feeling creeping in.
All that had happened was real. It made no sense but was all true. The Prime Minister's daughter was 'Dead'
With tangible proof of that, Inori began to experience a severe case of identity crisis. Not entirely sure of who she was anymore.
She had no more strength to spare on crying, so she simply closed her eyes. Speaking with a trembling voice.
"Oh father....won't you come rescue me?"
Her plea fell on deaf ears. Inori went quiet after that, likely succumbing to exhaustion.
----------------------------------------------
The streets had gone quieter, crickets performing at every corner.
A supposedly quick nap turned to a 6 hour rest and she was woken by her only friend. Hunger.
It was now 8:30 in the evening, not like Inori could tell the time.
She noticed 2 officers on patrol, surveiling the streets in case of a Sinner attack.
Inori scuffled to her feet in hopes of avoiding them, she had developed a slight fear of adults in general from her previous days.
Her feet dragged her weak body sluggishly, the moonlight casted a beautiful setting contradicting with inori's tattered state.
"I'm famished, the sleep might have restored some of my strength, but I'm still hungry and thirsty." She outlined her problems as if having a solution.
Her arms wrapped around her stomach, tightly.
"What.... did I do... to deserve this?
Father always called me...a wonderful daughter.... so why? Why am I punished so?" Trying to mutter strength only to shed more tears, Inori's situation was slowly settling in.
She was in a place she didn't know, although still Japan, Inori had never been to Fukui.
Her hair, now dark blue with nails painted black.
Lastly she was announced "Dead" Instead of missing which she currently was.
Her "corpse" was even mentioned!
She was starving for answers, anybody would be in her situation.
Now leaving the busy night time streets, Inori found herself in a small forest not too far from the alley she slept.
It branched across 2 neighborhoods, with dense, tall trees. Inori's survival instincts was at a critical low. Aware that Sinners could be lurking within, she still decided to enter.
She aimlessly wandered deeper and deeper into the forest in hopes of finding something, anything that could be of use, be it shelter or food. Very unlikely in a forest tho.
Her tracks stopped at an unbelievable sight, Inori's eyes filled with life.
"A house?!" She had found a little Japanese styled inn, it was stationed in a small field still in the forest. Not many trees surrounded the inn, almost as if being deliberately uprooted to create space for it's construction.
Not even wondering what a house would be doing in such a place, Inori rushed towards the inn, constantly falling but picking her self up, she desperately ran like a hobo finding a free home.
Her hopes and prayers at the time was finding warmth in the little inn, if possible getting a good night sleep there, a shower, some food, anything would be better than nothing.
'Forgive me father, but I need to plead for some help!'
The pride she had earlier to refuse begging was washed over by hunger. Definitely at her wits end.
She finally reached the inn. Short of breath and strength, she attempted to move the paper door, surprisingly it wasn't locked nor wedged.
Quietly sliding the door open, she examined the inner structure. it was obviously dark because of the time but Inori was hardly scared. The floor was dusty and the walls had a strange smell, except that of wood.
Manga of different genres were scattered on the floor as well as some dirty laundry.
She dismissed all the details and laid her bum down, after 7 days she finally sat in a house. She massaged her legs and spoke.
"I've been walking for a long time without shoes....my feet hurt."
Her face was barely recognizable, her hair all tangled and her bandage cloth a different color caused by dirt. She rubbed her sour body in search of any injuries, Some light pains could be felt at her waist but nothing major.
Her body was slowly turning into that of a ruffian.
The whole situation still baffled her, a week ago she was dining in the Kantei with the Prime Minister, her one and only father.
Inori looked around, staring at the walls of the room she was in.
'This place doesn't look that bad.'
She thought to herself forcing a smile. "I can imagine myself living here! I'll put a bed here."
She pointed at her right. "Then I'll put a book shelf here!"
She pointed at her left.
"Yes, this isn't bad at all!"
Nodding her head in agreement, Inori decided to make it her home.
- Perhaps the hunger had damaged her brain, but this was obviously someone else's house. What a stupid girl.
"Okay that's a little bit mean-
Interrupting her sentence, the ryokan door slid open from the outside-this was bad, the inn owner had arrived!
'Oh no!' She winced, afraid of what the owner would say seeing a homeless person in their house.
Her mind set to panic, Inori instinctively hid behind a small shelf in the room, anticipating this new character. Her body trembling from doing something wrong, invading someones home.
After enough tension, the figure finally spoke. Their voice unsteady as if in a stupor. "Honey! I'm home-!" A male voice spoke in... English? He dropped the empty bottle of beer he held outside, wiping his mouth as he stretched.
"Haha, my American accent is getting pretty good!" It reverted to Japanese, what a strange fellow. As he approached the light his face was revealed. What just entered was too beautiful to be human. From his height, about 2 years older than Inori, but still seemed to consume alcohol despite his young age.
He had long, wine colored hair that wasn't in any form of style, left to fall on his nape with some occasional locks resting on his forehead. Wearing a simple white shirt with some random stains of both blood and dirt, it swallowed his upper features as it was a tad too big. Although paired with black pants that seemed to fit perfectly.
'Oh no... I am in so much trouble!'
She hadn't yet seen this person but her heart was about to tear from her chest due to fear.
The young man stepped inside the house, dropping a black wrapped rod on the floor.
Clang!
It made a normal metal sound, those were most likely weapons of some sort. He had some light hiccups as he staggered towards the inner housing of the inn.
'I'll run when they're not looking!'
Inori on the other hand was plotting her escape. The man lazily bent down to remove his shoes which had straps rather than laces.
Then and there.
Inori ran as fast as her frail legs could-towards the door of course.
In that brief moment, their eyes met and she saw his face, his beautiful, BEAUTIFUL face. Eyes glowing red with black circles in each, his features perfectly symmetrical no matter what expression, putting most, if not all models to shame.
Inori's heart skipped a beat as time seemed to slow down.
'....what a beautiful girl.'
She thought while running outside like a burglar.
The man, still crouched from removing his shoes was left dumbfounded....at least before realizing.
".... wait a minute, t-thief! Thief! Come back here you son of a bitch!!!!" He quickly wore his shoes and chased after Inori! Leaving nothing but a blur behind. His drunken state vanished just like that as he dashed with all seriousness.
"Ahhhhhh! Why is she so fast!!!!"
Inori yelled, referring him as a girl. He was quickly gaining on her.
"Stop right there criminal scum!!!!" He shouted with full speed. Maneuvering his way around the forest like it was his natural habitat.
'P-p-please stop chasing me!! I am not a thief!!' Inori yelled. What would this person do if they caught up with her. She didn't want to visit the police after what happened.
Out of nowhere, the man lunged.
Before Inori could react, her back slammed against the cold earth, the air in her lungs bursting out in a sharp gasp.
His hand closed around her throat.
Tight. Really right.
"…I've got you now~"
His voice was low now. Gone was the drunken state, what remained was something far more dangerous.
Inori's eyes widened in pure shock.
Her hands immediately flew to his wrist, fingers clawing at his grip, but it didn't budge.
It was like trying to pry apart iron.
Her chest convulsed, desperately trying to draw in oxygen that wasn't there. A dry, broken sound escaped her lips, but no scream followed.
Her vision got blurrier by the second.
"…nng—!"
Her legs kicked weakly against the ground, body writhing beneath him, but he didn't move an inch. His weight pinned her down completely.
The pressure increased more and more.
Inori's nails dug into his skin, dragging down his arm in a frantic attempt to escape. Her strength was fading. Fast. And the world began to blur at its edges.
Sound dulled. As her heartbeat thundered loudly in her ears.
'…I can't… breathe…'
Tears welled up in her eyes, spilling over helplessly as her body trembled beneath him.
Her grip weakened. Her arms, once frantic, now barely clung to his sleeve. Inori's thoughts began to scatter. As strength left her fingers.
For a brief moment, Her body went still. That's when the boy noticed.
"Ah shit." He immediately let go.
The pressure on her throat loosened and Air rushed violently back into her lungs.
"—KGH!!"
Inori choked, her body jerking as she coughed violently, rolling onto her side, she desperately dragged in breath after breath. Each inhale came out broken, uneven.
She wheezed, backing away from the stranger. Inori rubbed her throat, clearly terrified. She immediately attempted running away but his hand grabbed her ankle, an inescapable grip followed.
"Where'd you think you're going?"
He asked pressing hard, causing Inori to cry. She instinctively blocked her head with trembling hands.
"P-p-p-please d-don't kill me! Please. I-i-i'm sorry. Please, p-please forgive me." The only thing she could do was beg. Inori didn't have the courage nor strength to fight back. Her head was faced down, too afraid to look him in the eye.
The situation was more terrifying than her first Sinner attack. At least then she could run away. This time however, she was unable to move. Her leg firmly held by a stranger caused an uncomfortable dread to rise. What was this person going to do with her.
The boy stared, then proceeding to rub his eyes with his left hand whilst holding her in place with the right. "Great, just when I managed to get drunk... anyways, What were you doing in my house?"
A simple but obvious question to ask given the situation, he interrogated Inori.
She didn't hear tho, still muttering "Please don't kill me." Over and over.
The boy snapped his fingers in front of her face. "Oi, I'm talking to you!" His sharp tone only made her flinch.
He sighed then spoke calmly. "Look, I'm sorry for almost killing you. I overreacted. Now just return what you stole okay?"
Inori's gaze still lingered on the grass for some seconds before raising her head.
"I...I didn't steal anything... I'm sorry for trespassing. P-please... just let me go..." Her voice cracked, and tears welled up in her eyes. Inori's fear was palpable. She didn't want to get punished.
The boy sat in front of her with an absent minded look, thinking to himself.
'What's with her get up. Cosplay?' he asked, except from her head, wrists down and feet. Inori was a blue haired Egyptian mummy.
Inori was still trembling when the boy gave half hearted smile.
Smack!
The man quickly knocked Inori unconscious like a ninja.
She couldn't even react and immediately lost consciousness from a precise strike to her nape.
"It's getting dark so it's probably better to search her than ask questions...I mean she looks like a homeless person, and hobos steal right?"
The boy searched Inori without touching her inappropriately.
After some seconds he face palmed, chuckling. "She doesn't have any pockets."
His face now painted with worry, he said scratching his hair. ".... so she's not a thief?" He stayed still, feeling bad for knocking her unconscious-
"Oh well, best head back home!"
Okay perhaps he didn't feel bad.
He left Inori's unconscious body and decided to call it a day.
The time was now 10:50, a full moon bathed the entire forest with light.
Surprisingly, the area was quite calm, no sign of a Sinner. Not even a wild animal despite being a forest.
At least Inori could rest in peace, that's if she survived the night cold. Speaking of cold, a slight rain had began to fall, it seemed like only a drizzle but could be life threatening to Inori's weakend body.
------------------------
Some time later the rain had increased in magnitude, it poured unforgivingly on Inori as she laid down resembling a corpse. This would certainly lead to breathing issues if water got in her nose.
A foot in yellow rain boots approached the sleeping beauty, it was the handsome boy responsible for Inori's unconsciousness. He was now wearing a yellow raincoat to shield him from the down pour.
"I can't sleep for some reason."
He muttered to himself staring at Inori getting beaten by the rain.
His conscious must've nagged leaving such a young girl in the woods.
And so he carried Inori back to his house on his back, preventing her certain doom.
"Does this mean I cancel tomorrow's plans?" He said out loud staring at the moon, the last word for the day as he took Inori to his home.